Method and apparatus for creating and executing internet based lectures using public domain web pages

ABSTRACT

An Internet-enabled subscription teaching service system has an Internet-connected lecture server executing a software suite, one or more teacher-author stations coupled to the Internet-connected lecture server, having input and display apparatus, and including lecture-authoring software, and one or more Internet-capable lecture client stations having lecture-participation software. Teacher-authors use the teacher-author stations to prepare lectures through the lecture-authoring software, the lecture server stores prepared lectures and provides lectures on a pre-determined schedule to lecture clients at the lecture client stations, and the lecture clients follow the provided lectures at the lecture client stations through the lecture-participation software. Some lectures are fully automatic, and some are directed by the teacher-authors in real time. In the real time case recipients are directed to WEB pages in unison, and annotation and commentary is provided by the teacher-author as pages are visited.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is in the field of interactive on-linecommunication and has particular application to methods includingsoftware for creating and conducting interactive lectures via theInternet or other wide-area network (WAN).

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The public information network widely known as the Internet is thelargest source of quickly accessible information in the world. Anyonewith a computer, appropriate Internet access and interactive software (abrowser) can access information on virtually any subject, and interactin many ways with other persons.

In recent years, schools such as high schools, colleges, trade schoolsand the like have begun offering courses, which are accessible on-lineby students operating Internet-capable computers. In some cases one maywork toward a degree in almost any field without ever entering aclassroom. With the appropriate software program installed on acomputer, an individual may have access, generally by password, toserver-based material offered by a learning institution including reviewmaterial, quizzes, tests and so on.

In practice, one must log in to a designated server to gain access torequired study material. After study material is provided an interactivetest is typically offered. Such a server records interaction by studentsso that teachers and administrators may review, grade, and otherwisetrack a student's progress.

Interactive study services like those described above, while providingan important service, are somewhat limited in scope and application. Oneproblem is that a student must physically log-in to the service andinteract with prepared material. This requires that the student remembera password and, in some cases, coded names for his correct coursematerial. Often, the material has pre-set instructions that the studentmust follow before properly interacting with the offered material. Ifthe instructions are not clear, or if they are followed incorrectly, astudent may become frustrated, or have to start over after manyinteractions. If a student has questions, typically only e-mail isavailable for contacting the teacher or administrator of the course.

Another problem with the kinds of on-line education offered in the priorart is that teachers must research and prepare the material according tosoftware conventions, which requires knowledge of computer languages. Ateacher that cannot prepare the lessons according to required softwareconvention must have a technician prepare the material and make itaccessible. There are many complex routines to deal with for bothteachers and students.

As described above, the Internet provides access to information onvirtually any subject matter. Similarly, there are many educational Webpages that contain information that would relate to fields covered byinstitutions of higher learning, high schools, or trade schools. SuchWEB pages are often public-domain pages and may generally be copied andused for educational purposes without permission from the creator orhost of the page. Virtually any subject that is taught in a learningenvironment may be found on a WEB page on the Internet. In manyinstances, there is information available from WEB pages that has notbeen written in any textbook. Such pages may be accessed via one of avariety of known search tools (browsers) that are also freely availableto the public.

What is clearly needed is an educational system wherein educationalproviders may prepare lectures and the like from existing WEB sourcesand package them for timed execution such that a plurality of studentsmay learn on-line according to a pre-determined schedule, and in somecases in real time. Such an educational system would eliminate the needfor complicated program configurations and pass word log-ins, andprovide students with a more disciplined and structured on-lineeducation, while at the same time provide educators with a valuable newtool to disseminate ideas.

A service like that contemplated and taught in the present invention,described in enabling detail below, would use the existing technology ofInternet server/client communication, which includes multi-WEB castingcapability, and abundant educational information already posted on theInternet, making it possible to obtain and prepare material, usingediting tools, and package it to be sent to students having computerswith Internet access.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention an Internet-enabledsubscription teaching service system is provided, comprising anInternet-connected lecture server executing a software suite; one ormore teacher-author stations coupled to the Internet-connected lectureserver, having input and display apparatus, and includinglecture-authoring software; and one or more Internet-capable lectureclient stations having lecture-participation software. Teacher-authorsusing the teacher-author stations prepare lectures through thelecture-authoring software, the lecture server stores prepared lecturesand provides lectures on a pre-determined schedule to lecture clients atthe lecture client stations, and the lecture clients follow the providedlectures at the lecture client stations through thelecture-participation software.

In preferred embodiments the teacher-author stations areInternet-capable and the lecture-authoring software cooperates withbrowser software to enable the teacher-authors to search for and browsecandidate WEB pages, to enhance and store selected ones of such pagesfound, to arrange stored product in an order of desired presentation,and to upload a finished lecture to the lecture server for storage andeventual provision of the lecture to the lecture client stationsaccording to the pre-determined schedule. Enhancement may include one ormore of masking content, text annotation, attaching audio or videofiles, or adding graphic elements to the selected page.

In some embodiments the lecture-authoring software further enables theteacher-author to author new pages, and to arrange the new pages inorder with the selected WEB pages in creating a lecture. The softwaremay be stand-alone or implemented as a WEB browser plug-in.

In preferred embodiments the Internet-connected lecture server storesprepared lectures and parameters for replaying lectures on the Internet,and accesses and replays stored lectures to pre-determined groups oflecture clients according to the stored parameters. In some cases thelecture server further negotiates with lecture clients for participationin lectures, manages assignment of lecture clients with lectures, andalerts clients as to times for individual ones of the stored lectures.Also in some cases the lectures provided by the lecture server toclients require client interaction with the lectures, and the lectureclients interact through the lecture participation software.

In an alternative embodiment lectures require participation by theteacher-author of the lecture, and while a lecture is played, lectureclients are directed to WEB pages in real time, and while viewing pagesto which they are directed interact with the teacher author through thelecture-participation and the lecture-server software.

Apparatus, architecture, and methods for practicing the invention aretaught in enabling detail below, providing for the first time a systemwherein the Internet may be used to manage lectures having any number ofsimultaneous participants, using information from Internet-connectedservers (WEB pages), and allowing participants to interact with thelecture material, or with a lecturer in a real time situation.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING FIGURES

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating an Internet-based lecture systemaccording to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 illustrates an exemplary parent interface according to anembodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 illustrates an exemplary client interface according to anembodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating a scheduled execution and pusheddelivery of an Internet-based lecture according to an embodiment of thepresent invention.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

According to an embodiment of the present invention, a unique serviceincluding enabling software is provided that allows a teacher or othereducation administrator to create and package self-executing lectureprograms using publicly accessible Internet WEB pages. Such lectureprograms in a preferred embodiment are designed to execute according toa predetermined time schedule, whereupon they are made available to aplurality of students or other subscribers operating PC's or otherInternet-capable equipment connected to the Internet network. The methodand apparatus of the present invention is described in enabling detailbelow.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating an Internet-based lecture system9 according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention. System 9illustrates an exemplary network architecture wherein the method andapparatus of the present invention may be practiced. System 9 comprisesa packet-data network 11, which in this example is the well-knownInternet network, and a public switched telephone network (PSTN) 13through which Internet 11 may be accessed. Internet 11 may be any otherdata packet network known in the art such as a private wide-area-network(WAN) or a company Intranet. PSTN 13 may be ant other type ofconnection-orientated-switched-telephony (COST) network such as aprivate network or the like, and it will be apparent to the skilledartisan that the invention is not limited to any particular means ofInternet access. A telephone network is exemplary only.

In this embodiment, the service exemplified by system 9 isInternet-based and may be hosted by any third-party provider such as aschool, corporation, Internet-service provider (ISP) or any otherinterested network or communications provider. Education providers(teachers) and interested individuals (learners) all subscribe to theservice and use a software according to embodiments of the presentinvention implementation to enable practice of the present invention.

Internet 11 has an Internet backbone 23, well-known in the art,illustrated to represent physical connectivity to many varied machinesin the network. An Internet server 19, illustrated as connected tobackbone 23, represents a main server in an embodiment of the inventionadapted to serve pre-packaged lectures. A mass data repository 21 isprovided connected to server 19 for the purpose of storing various dataand executable software associated with lecturers, and lecturerecipients. Such data stored in repository 21 may include, but is notlimited to recipient computer addresses, physical addresses, educationalrecords, phone numbers, lecturer's computer addresses, subscriberfinancial records, pre-packaged lectures and so on. Two illustratedservers 29 and 27, shown connected to backbone 23 represent third-partyInternet WEB servers serving WEB-based content such ashyper-text-markup-language (HTML) pages to any Internet-connected useroperating a browser application to enable Internet navigation as isknown in the art.

Lecture recipients 15 (1-n) are represented by PCs having connected toan ISP 20 situated in PSTN network 13. In this case, all lecturerecipient's 15 are using ISP 20 to gain access to Internet network 11.ISP 20 is connected to Internet network 11 by virtue of a dataconnection 25. Again, other sorts of Internet access may be used, andthere is no limitation to a single ISP. It will be apparent to one withskill in the art that recipients 15 1-n may not all be using ISP 20 togain access to Internet 11. Recipients 15 1-n may be physically distantfrom one another such as spread over the nation, or in some cases, theworld. Moreover, some may have integrated-digital-service-network (ISDN)connections, corporate on-line accounts, wireless connection capability,and so on. The inventor chooses to illustrate one ISP for the purpose ofillustrating only one possible and common connection method to Internet11. There are many other variations that are possible.

A lecture service provider (educator) 17 is illustrated also asconnected to ISP 20, but may of course connect by any possible suitableapparatus and protocol. There will typically be many more lecturers suchas lecturer 17 participating in the practice of the present inventionthan is illustrated here. However, the inventor deems that theillustration of one lecturer and the plurality of recipients in thisexample is sufficient for the purpose of teaching the present inventionto the skilled artisan.

Main server 19 has software 31 installed and executing therein toprovide functions of server 19 according to an embodiment of the presentinvention. Such functions include but are not limited to access andmanagement of subscriber parameters stored in repository 21, organizingand executing stored lectures, notifying lecture recipients such asrecipients 15 of impending lectures, tracking participation andadministrating charges and payment, and so on.

Lecturer 17 has software 35 installed and executing on his/her personalcomputer which, in this example is labeled “L” for lecturer. Software 35is, in a preferred embodiment, a browser plug-in that integrates aunique capability of caching and annotating and bundling WEB pages tonormal browser function.

Lecture recipient 2 is illustrated as having software 33 installed andexecuting on his/her PC as well. All other lecture recipients may beassumed to have the same or similar software 33 installed and executingon their respective PC's. Software 33 is, in a preferred embodiment,also a browser plug-in. Software 33 allows lecture recipients to benotified of a scheduled lecture, and transfers browser control toinstance 31 in server 19 when a lecture is executing. Other features ofinstance 33 allow dissemination of varied content that may be insertedand presented in an Internet-based lecture.

In practice of the present invention, lecturer 17 connects to Internet11 through ISP 20 as is known in the art for the purpose of creating anInternet-based lecture. Lecturer 17 invokes software 35 for tools tocreate a lecture. Software 35 allows lecturer 17 to search for, access,and cache copies of WEB pages related to any desired subject matter uponwhich he or she wishes to base a lecture. A mark-up tool kit included insoftware 35 allows lecturer 17 to annotate and insert added content intoa cached copy of any WEB page, as well as to block out undesirablecontent.

After accessing, caching, and annotating a plurality of WEB pages as alecture, the annotated copies are bundled together according to lecturerpreference and set to a time schedule for execution. In this bundlingprocess the lecturer may also interweave self-composed pages, audionotes, and the like. A completed bundle may then be uploaded over theInternet to server 19 where it is received and stored.

Software 31 at server 19 uses the lecture information provided bylecturer 17 and parameters and other information stored in repository 21to coordinate delivery of the stored lecture at the appropriate time ofexecution. Software 31 may send ahead-of-schedule notification toplanned recipients of the stored lecture. In some cases notification mayinclude a means for booting up and automatically connecting a recipientto an Internet server such as server 19 for delivery of the lecture. Inother instances, a recipient may, if allowed, navigate on his or her ownto server 19 and retrieve the stored lecture at his or her convenience.

A pre-packaged lecture may be streamed to recipients such as recipients15 or may be sent as a compressed executable file (or bundle of files)and be presented off-line at the recipient's location. As a lecture ispresented, software 33 allows recipients to perform limited interactionsuch as note-taking, saving and storing portions of the lecture in apersonal (client side) or an on-line (server side) cache for latterreview.

In yet another embodiment, a lecturer may use server 19 to stream areal-time lecture wherein recipients may in effect follow-the-leader byvirtue of automatic browser control provided by software 31 at server19. In this case, provision may be made for interactive chat portions ofthe lecture for question and answer sessions.

The method and apparatus of the present invention may be used byhigher-learning institutions, trade schools, recreational guides,conductors of seminars, or by any person authorized (subscribing to) theservice. The method and apparatus of the present invention may be usedfor profit or purely for educational purpose.

The unique method of allowing lecturer's the use of public, and in somecases, commercial WEB pages as basic content for the learning materialreduces much work normally incurred through the reading and preparing ofmaterial from text books and other physical resources. Since virtuallyany informative data may be obtained on the Internet, lecturer's usingappropriate search tools may quickly assemble and prepare an on-linelecture without leaving their homes and at a time of their convenience.

It will be apparent to one with skill in the art that the method andapparatus of the present invention may be practiced on the Internet withconventional connection technology as described above, or on any otherdata network capable of transmitting graphics, text, and voice. All thatis required is a browser tool enhanced with the software of the presentinvention a viable network connection capability, and a networkappliance capable of displaying and otherwise presenting theinformation.

FIG. 2 is illustrates an exemplary parent interface provided by software35 of FIG. 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention. Abrowser display interface 37 is illustrated as an exemplary and enhancedinterface as it might appear on a lecturer's PC (FIG. 1) after invokingof software 35.

In this example, browser 37 retains much of it's conventional appearanceand function such as having a browser tool bar, an Internet addresswindow, links and destination buttons, and so on, as re known in theart. However, once software 35 of FIG. 1 is invoked, a unique tool bar43 appears in a convenient location such as along the left side of thebrowser window as illustrated here. A series of interactive options aremade available to a lecturer through tool bar 43. A brief description ofexemplary options starting from the top of tool bar 43 and progressingserially down follows.

At the top of tool bar 43 is illustrated a button labeled Server, whichis provided and adapted to allow for uploading a completed lecturebundle to an appropriate server such as server 19 of FIG. 1. Upondepressing the server button, an immediate upload may be initiated, or asecond window allowing for a selection of available servers for uploadmay be presented. The server button may also be used for receivingupdates or additional tools from a server such as server 19.

A button labeled Text is provided and adapted to allow a lecturer toinsert text wording into any place on a cached WEB page, hereinaftertermed a lecture page, being annotated. This capability includesinsertion of paragraphs or text blocks, margin notes, footnotes,annotations that are coded to open a second window containing the actualtext, information balloons, and so on. In one embodiment, an HTML texteditor may be invoked to actually enable altering of the original texton the page. Annotation tools also allow font selection and other texteffects (bold, italic, underline).

A button labeled Voice is provided and adapted to allow a lecturer toinsert audio files into a lecture page. A cached copy of an original WEBpage, or lecture page, will typically not include certain content suchas streamed audio or video from the original source. To reuse this typeof content, a lecturer may first download and save any desiredmulti-media content to his hard drive, and re-embed a link to it intothe cached version of the WEB page, and of course, uploading the contentto a server such as server 19. In this way, original multimedia contentmay be re-used in a lecture. In some cases permission must be obtainedfrom the source of a desired WEB page for linking to added multimediacontent to avoid copyright violations and the like.

A button labeled Pointer is provided and adapted to allow a pointer iconsuch as an arrow or the like to appear at desired locations on a lecturepage at desired times during execution of the lecture. Such a pointermay be such as an animated GIF. A button entitled Label provides afunction for overlaying existing labels such as may be associated withpictures or the like. This function may be included in the text optionand, therefore may not actually appear as a separate function in toolbar 43.

A button labeled Mask is provided and allows the lecturer to mask orblock out any undesirable content on a lecture page such as any contentthat is not to be included in the lecture, or content that wouldotherwise distract from the lecture. Graphics and text may be masked orblocked out.

A button labeled Insert is provided and adapted to allow a lecturer toinsert clipart, pictures, animated GIFs, charts, and other such contentinto a lecture page. The insert button may also be used in conjunctionwith other provided subject buttons such as voice or text.

A button labeled Color is provided and adapted to allow a lecturer toadjust or change color parameters of text or graphics on a lecture page.A button labeled Mono renders selected matter such as text or graphic'sin the form of black and white or grayscale. A button labeled Pause isprovided and adapted for allowing a lecturer to insert a timed pausedesignated for such as note taking or the like. Invoking the pausebutton may bring up a blank note page that may be included in thelecture or a created review page that the recipient may interact withand store or send back to server 19. In some instances, a quiz or testpage may be inserted into the lecture.

A button labeled Animate is provided and adapted to provide access topre-prepared animated GIFs or the like that may be re-used by thelecturer. In one embodiment, the animate button may also provide aseparate tool kit for creating such GIFs. It will be apparent to onewith skill in the art that a tool bar such as tool bar 43 may containadditional or fewer options than are illustrated herein withoutdeparting from the spirit and scope of the present invention. It isintended by the inventor that tool bar 43 be construed as exemplary onlyof the functionality and tooling capability afforded to a lecturerthrough software 35 (FIG. 1).

A second tool bar 39 is provided and illustrated as displayed across thebottom of browser window 37. In general, tool bar 43 contains annotationand editing functions. However, tool bar 39 contains other is functions,some of which are used in conjunction with the server function of toolbar 43. Options presented in tool bar 39 are described serially fromleft to right.

As part of a search option, a button labeled Category allows a lecturerto choose from a database filled with broadly defined lecture categoriesto narrow subject matter during a WEB search for pages generally fallingwithin the category. For example, a broad category might be History. Abutton labeled Subject is provided and allows the lecturer to choosefrom a wide variety of subjects associated with any chosen category tofurther narrow a search for material. For example, if a broad categoryis History, then an associated subject might be Native American.Additional parameters may be entered to further narrow the search. Asearch window 45 (not part of tool bar 39) is provided and located abovetool bar 39 and to the right of tool bar 43. Tool bar 45 displays thesearch parameter examples given in reference to the category and subjectbuttons. The additional parameter mentioned happens to be East Coast inthis example. Any results will be WEB pages having to do with theHistory of Native Americans of the East Coast. Still additionalparameters may be entered to further narrow a search for lecturematerial.

In one embodiment, search engine known such as Altavista™ or Excite™,which are popular search engines, may be used. The inventor simply notesthat a special WEB search engine may be provided that is tailored toreturning results that are educational in nature, and therefore morelikely to be usable for lecture material. In some cases, a specialon-line database may be created to contain links to known on-lineeducational references such as libraries or other research facilities. Alink to such a database may be made available in one of the illustratedtool bars. Such a search engine and database described above may behosted by a third party and made available through a providing serviceto those subscribers practicing the present invention.

A button labeled Compress is provided and adapted to allow a lecturer tocompress a lecture for faster uploading to a server such as server 19 ofFIG. 1. In this case, the compress function may be used in conjunctionwith the server button in tool bar 43.

A button labeled Real Time is provided and adapted to allow a lecturerto conduct a lecture in real time such that lecture recipients see pagesas they are being annotated. In this case, a server such as server 19would be used to stream the lecture directly to recipients as it isbeing conducted without storing it. In another instance, a lecturer mayopen a chat connection in server 19 or an associated server dedicatedfor the purpose. Recipients would be instructed to open their chatprograms and join the chat. As lecture pages are streamed to recipients,the lecturer may discuss them in the chat and hold discussions in a ffollow-the-leader format. In this way, the lecturer may conduct alecture without necessarily editing the WEB pages. Simple textinstruction appearing in recipients chat windows would direct recipientsto which portions of a lecture page to pay attention to and whichportions to disregard. This feature may also allow a lecturer to controla special on-screen cursor displayed to all lecture recipients. Thelecturer may direct recipients attention to different points in a pageby use of the cursor.

A button labeled Create Class is provided and adapted to allow alecturer to choose which recipients will receive a lecture. For example,if the lecturer is a teacher teaching an on-line class then he may holda special lecture for a select portion of his class for, perhaps extracredit, or the like.

A button labeled New Student is provided and adapted to allow thelecturer to configure a new student into his on-line class. If thelecturer is a public speaker, and recipients are a revolving body ofone-time participants representing the general public, then temporarysoftware may be made available to such recipients for one-time use tosubscribe to the lecture. Such an example might be that of a real-estateseminar or the like. There are many varied possibilities. In anotheralternative all class organization is managed by server 19 (FIG. 1), andthere may be a lecture review system allowing potential users to previewan offered lecture before opting to become a recipient of the lecture.Fees for students may also be handled by server 19 through any ofseveral transactional methods on-lie (credit cards, deposit accounts, etal.)

A third tool bar 41 is provided and illustrated as located across thetop of browser window 37. Tool bar 41 contains options related topackaging and bundling a completed lecture. The options presented intool bar 41 are described serially from left to right.

A button labeled Save is provided and adapted to allow a lecturer tosave edits made to a lecture page. The save button may also allow alecturer to save any other elements of the editing process such ascreated GIFs, elements from previous pages that may be inserted tosubsequent pages, and so on. A button labeled Sort is provided andadapted to allow a lecturer to sort lecture pages by any desired orderor criteria. Lecture pages are renumbered as necessary to amend theserial order desired for presentation.

A button labeled Stored allows a lecturer to browse through any storedmaterial created and saved, or simply saved that may be re-used. Suchstorage may be an on-line storage dedicated for the purpose. In oneembodiment, a certain amount of on-line storage may be made available tolecturers participating in the service as part of the service. Inanother embodiment, material may simply be stored at the location of thelecturer such as on a non-volatile storage device connected to his orher PC.

A button labeled Schedule is provided and adapted to allow a lecturer toapply a time schedule to a completed lecture. A button labeled Retrieveis provided and adapted to allow a lecturer to retrieve any storedmaterial including a completed lecture that may be stored in server 19.An instance wherein a lecturer may retrieve a stored lecture may be toadd new material before the time deadline, or to generally update alecture. In another instance, a lecturer may change his mind aboutscheduling or recipient parameters, and may retrieve a lecture in orderto alter those parameters.

A button labeled Bundle is provided and adapted to allow a lecturer tolink a lecture together in a bundle or package such that it executesaccording to timed fashion and pre-determined order. In some instances,a bundle will include lecture pages that are re-displayed for review, orother purposes. In such instances the re-used page need not be providedin duplicate, but simply re-streamed via instruction in the bundle.

A button labeled Link is provided and adapted to allow a lecturer toprovide links to audio, video, other pages not included in the bundle,and so on. A button labeled Review allows a lecturer to review editedportions of a lecture including playing any audio or multi-mediaassociated with the lecture in order to test it's presentation andeffectiveness.

It will be apparent to one with skill in the art that the appearance ofoptions in browser window 37, such as in the tool bars described above,may be widely varied. For example, instead of tool bars, pull-down menusmay be used. In one embodiment a separate tool panel is presentedoutside of the browser window. Moreover, additional enhancement such asspecial keyboard functions for initiating certain commands or the likemay be applied. There are many possibilities. Software 35, as a browserplug-in, is intended to afford a lecturer with complete control in thecreation and packaging of an on-line lecture.

In another embodiment lecturers, rather than connecting on-line toprepare and upload lectures, may be knowledge workers at or near thesite of server 19, and may be connected to server 19 through, forexample, a local area network (LAN), or some other sort of data networkother than the Internet. In this embodiment server 19 may be a part of acomprehensive educational server system dedicated to knowledgedissemination (cyber-teaching).

In some embodiments it is not necessary that the recipient have specialsoftware. The recipient in this minimal embodiment connects to theInternet, browses to the service of server 19, and selects a lecture orlesson plan. The server may negotiate time, fees and the like with thepotential recipient, and then the lecture is presented. The recipient inthis case is a passive follower.

In a preferred embodiment the recipient may be more interactive. FIG. 3is an exemplary client interface enhanced by software 33 of FIG. 1according to an embodiment of the present invention. A browser interface47, hereinafter termed browser window 47, is illustrated as it mightappear to a lecture recipient. Browser window 47 appears much as anormal browser window known in the art including such as retainingnormal browser options and the like as was described with browser window37 of FIG. 2. However, once software 33 is invoked on a recipients PC, atool bar 49 appears presenting certain options to a recipient receivinga lecture from a server such as server 19 of FIG. 1.

In this example browser window 47 contains a presented lecture page 51from an exemplary lecture provided by server 19, illustrating a piechart breaking down corporate expenditures. Such a page may be part of alecture on corporate financing available through an on-line economicsclass, for example. On page 51, an animated GIF in the form of a pointerarrow is shown pointing to a certain section of the pie chart while anaudio player 55 is describing the pie chart. The player interface may behidden rather than displayed as shown. Such multimedia content may beassociated to a lecture and streamed in time of presentation of aspecific lecture page pertaining to the multimedia.

There are a variety of ways that a lecture recipient may participate in(interact with) a lecture. In one embodiment, a notification of animpending lecture indicating the time and description of the lecture issent to potential recipients ahead of the scheduled lecture time. Thismay be accomplished by e-mail, pop-up notification if the user ison-line, automated phone or fax, and so on. After receivingnotification, a user may log-on to an appropriate lecture server such asserver 19 of FIG. 1 at the scheduled time to participate in the lecture.

In one embodiment, means for automatically booting a recipient's PC andlogging him or her into server 19 for the purpose of receiving a lectureis provided. In this push embodiment, software 31 at server 19 takesfull control of some or all of recipients' computers at lecture time.For example, if a user is already on-line surfing an unrelated WEB site,software 31 takes control of browser 47 and immediately navigates to theappropriate server address at the start time of the impending lecture. Apause period may be afforded to recipients such that they may save anywork that they were engaged in on their PC's before control isrelinquished, and users may also have veto power.

In a preferred embodiment, a lecture server such as server 19 of FIG. 1takes full control of browser window 47 during a lecture. Lecture pagesautomatically display according to a pre-determined ordered and timedfashion. Any multimedia associated with a lecture automatically invokesthe appropriate player applications for receiving and playing the media.

Referring back to FIG. 3, tool bar 49 contains certain options which aremade available to recipients during an active lecture session. Theseoptions are described serially top to bottom as follows.

A button labeled Replay is provided and adapted to allow a lecturerecipient to save and replay portions of or all of a lecture after ithas been presented. A button labeled Notes is provided and adapted toallow a lecture recipient to call up a blank page during a lecture forthe purpose of entering any text notes that are desired. Such a notepage may be linked to the subject matter inspiring the notes such thatduring replay of the lecture, the notes may be viewed next to theappropriate lecture page. Such linking may be automatic.

A button labeled Go To is provided and adapted to allow a lecturerecipient to navigate to a specific portion or page in a lecture afterit has been presented and is being reviewed by a recipient. A buttonlabeled Save is provided and adapted to allow a lecture recipient tosave all of or any portion of a lecture to a local file.

A button labeled Question is provided and adapted to allow a lecturerecipient to send an on-line question to a lecturer. Such a question maybe sent in the form of an e-mail to a lecturer, or perhaps to a queueset up for the purpose on server 19 or another server dedicated for thepurpose. In the real-time case the lecturer may deal with questions inreal time on-line. To avoid overwhelming the lecturer in the real-timecase, the number of recipients may be limited.

A button labeled Eval is provided and adapted to allow a lecturerecipient to request an impromptu evaluation or practice test on what heor she has learned from the lecture. Such an evaluation may bepre-prepared by a lecturer and stored in server 19 is association with aspecific lecture. A recipient may fill out the evaluation and send itback to server 19 for grading by the lecturer, or by an automatedsystem. The evaluation option may also be used by a recipient to requestan on-line evaluation for the purpose of advancing to a higher levelclass, or perhaps for pre-testing out of a planned lecture.

A button labeled Config is provided and adapted to allow a lecturerecipient to configure the appropriate PC platform and softwareparameters in order to optimize lecture delivery and presentationsuccess. For example, if a lecture recipient has upgraded to a moreadvanced multimedia player, he or she may indicate the version and brandof the player to server 19 such that the multimedia portions of alecture may be streamed in that format. If a lecture recipient plans toreceive a lecture in another platform such as Apple™, then theappropriate indications may be sent to server 19 through theconfiguration option.

A button labeled Test is provided and adapted to allow a lecturerecipient to test aspects of his or her PC capability related toreceiving a lecture such as bandwidth capability, microphone capability,sound and video system, or other parameters. A button labeled send isprovided and adapted to allow a lecture recipient to send certain datato server 19 or, in some cases to a lecturer. Such data might includepayment to a lecturer for a commercial lecture received payment foron-line books or other reference material, comments, or the like.

A button labeled Pause is provided and adapted to allow a lecturerecipient to pause a lecture in progress in order to perform some otherrequired task such as answer a telephone, use a bathroom, get a cup ofcoffee, etc. When a lecture is paused, the connection a lecture serversuch as server 19 remains open such that hitting pause again resumesdownload of the lecture at the point where it was paused. This optionis, of course not available with the real-time version.

In a preferred embodiment, enhancements to browser window 47 effected bysoftware plug-in 33 of FIG. 1 offer much less control than the parentenhancement represented by software 35 (FIG. 1) and browser window 37(FIG. 2) afforded to a lecturer. This is so that a lecturer such as ateacher, for instance, may have some control over his on-line class.However, in other embodiments, more control may be afforded to lecturerecipients without departing from the spirit and scope of the presentinvention. For example, a lecture recipient may be allowed to create ormodify his own lecture to present to other classmates. Such a lecturemay be a book report, presentation on what was learned in class, or someother required report. In this case, appropriate tools such as thoserepresented in FIG. 2 may be afforded to software 33 (FIG. 1) and bepresented on such as an additional tool bar in browser window 47.

It will be apparent to one with skill in the art that the enhancementsprovided by virtue of software instances 35 (lecturer) and 33 (lecturerecipient) may be provided in the form of a browser plug-in as describedin preferred embodiments, or may be provided as standalone programs thatintegrate with certain browser functions. In another embodiment, suchenhancements may be held on-line and only available when a lecturer orlecture recipient is connected to a server providing the software suchas server 19 of FIG. 1.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating execution and delivery of anInternet-based lecture from server 19 according to an embodiment of thepresent invention. Server 19, in this example stores deliverablelectures A-N. Lectures A-N may all be scheduled for delivery todifferent recipients at different times. There may be more than oneserver available to store and serve lectures without departing from thespirit and scope of the present invention. For example, a large learninginstitution such as a college may reserve a single server for presentingtheir material. Teachers and students belonging to the institution willall subscribe to the same server. In another embodiment, one server maybe used for a variety of lecturers from different institutions includingindependent operators. There are many varied possibilities.

Server 19, which is a lecture server hosted, in this example by aservice referred to as Learning.com by the inventor, may be a singleserver or many connected servers adapted to practice the presentinvention. In this example, lecture A was created by virtue of plug-in35 (FIG. 1) and uploaded by a lecturer at 9:00 AM. The lecturer hasprogrammed lecture A to execute at 3:00 PM, perhaps on the same day.Lecture A, instead of being programmed to execute at a certain time, maysimply be stored for recipients to access at any convenient time.However, in this instance, lecture A will automatically execute atexactly 3:00 PM. Moreover, the practice of requiring a minimum studentbody is more sparing of certain hardware resources.

It is presumed in this example that notification regarding the impendingexecution of lecture a has already been sent to target recipientsrepresented by element number 57 and illustrated as a plurality ofcomputer icons. At 3:00 PM, lecture A executes and is delivered throughInternet network 11 along individual connections represented by downwardarrows to ISP's 20 at the PSTN level. ISP 20 is representative of all ofthe Internet connection schemes used by all of the recipients. Thedownward connection arrows at the ISP level represent individual modemInternet connections to server 19 and to recipients 57 through the PSTNnetwork, or by any other data link, as illustrated by the expansion ofthe connecting arrows to each individual recipient icon.

At 3:01 PM all of recipients 57 are actively participating in thereceipt of lecture A. In this example, there are 24 recipients 57participating in the presentation of lecture A. In other embodimentsthere may be more or fewer recipients 57 participating. The randomnumber 24 simply illustrates a viable class size for a teacher givinglecture A. At 3:00 PM, the lecturer who authored lecture A may beplaying golf or skiing with the knowledge that his or her class is beingtaught.

It will be apparent to one with skill in the art that the method andapparatus of the present invention may be practiced on a local orinternational scale without departing from the spirit and scope of thepresent invention. For example, recipients 57 may be spreadgeographically in separate countries. Time differences and languageconversion may be performed at server 19 in accordance with studentparameters. In most embodiments, recipients 57 will be using variedconnection schemes, different Internet access programs, ISP's andperhaps, different technologies for accessing the Internet. For example,some recipients 57 maybe accessing from wireless laptop computers whileothers are using a modem and a phone line. Appropriate parameters may bepre-configured at server 19 and stored for recipients in such asrepository 21 (FIG. 1).

The method and apparatus of the present invention may be tailored tovirtually any type of speaker/audience environment including but notlimited to education, commercial seminars, sales meetings, politicalforums or speeches, etc. In some cases lecturers may, instead of usingpublic domain WEB pages, create their own on-line lecture pages as maybe required depending on content. In other instances, a combination ofpublic domain pages and created pages may be used. For example, apolitician giving a speech may provide many of his or her own lecturepages, but may also link to or include some public domain pages into theon-line speech. Such public pages may be a published accounting of arivals campaign financing or the like.

It will be readily apparent to one with skill in the art that the methodand apparatus of the present invention is extremely versatile andtherefore should be afforded the broadest scope. The spirit and scope ofthe present invention is limited only by the claims that follow.

1. An Internet-enabled subscription teaching service system, comprising:an Internet-connected lecture server executing a software suite; one ormore teacher-author stations coupled to the Internet-connected lectureserver, having input and display apparatus, and includinglecture-authoring software; and one or more Internet-capable lectureclient stations having lecture-participation software; whereinteacher-authors using the teacher-author stations prepare lecturesthrough the lecture-authoring software, the lecture server storesprepared lectures and provides lectures on a pre-determined schedule tolecture clients at the lecture client stations, and the lecture clientsfollow the provided lectures at the lecture client stations through thelecture-participation software.
 2. The system of claim 1 wherein theteacher-author stations are Internet-capable and wherein thelecture-authoring software cooperates with browser software to enablethe teacher-authors to search for and browse candidate WEB pages, toenhance and store selected ones of such pages found, to arrange storedproduct in an order of desired presentation, and to upload a finishedlecture to the lecture server for storage and eventual provision of thelecture to the lecture client stations according to the pre-determinedschedule.
 3. The system of claim 2 wherein enhancement comprises one ormore of masking content, text annotation, attaching audio or videofiles, or adding graphic elements to the selected page.
 4. The system ofclaim 2 wherein the lecture-authoring software further enables theteacher-author to author new pages, and to arrange the new pages inorder with the selected WEB pages in creating a lecture.
 5. The systemof claim 2 wherein the lecture authoring software is implemented on theteacher-author station as a browser plug-in.
 6. The system of claim 1wherein the Internet-connected lecture server stores prepared lecturesand parameters for replaying lectures on the Internet, and accesses andreplays stored lectures to pre-determined groups of lecture clientsaccording to the stored parameters.
 7. The system of claim 6 wherein thelecture server further negotiates with lecture clients for participationin lectures, manages assignment of lecture clients with lectures, andalerts clients as to times for individual ones of the stored lectures.8. The system of claim 1 wherein the lectures provided by the lectureserver to clients require client interaction with the lectures, and thelecture clients interact through the lecture participation software. 9.The system of claim 1 wherein lectures require participation by theteacher-author of the lecture, and while a lecture is played, lectureclients are directed to WEB pages in real time, and while viewing pagesto which they are directed interact with the teacher author through thelecture-participation and the lecture-server software.
 10. A method foron-line teaching, comprising the steps of: (a) composing a lectureon-line by a teacher-author at a teacher-author station by browsing WEBpages, altering copies of pages found, and saving altered pages in aparticular order as a lecture; (b) uploading the completed lecture tolecture server; and (c) playing the lecture on the Internet at anagreed-to time to a plurality of lecture clients at Internet-connectedclient workstations.
 11. The method of claim 10 wherein, in step (a)altering copies of WEB pages comprises one or more of masking content,text annotation, attaching audio or video files, or adding graphicelements to the selected page.
 12. The method of claim 10 wherein, instep (a), the teacher-author creates new pages, and arranges the newpages in order with the selected WEB pages in creating a lecture. 13.The method of claim 10 wherein the teacher author uses lecture-authoringsoftware implemented on the teacher-author station.
 14. The method ofclaim 13 wherein the lecture-authoring software is implemented as a WEBbrowser plug-in.
 15. The method of claim 10 wherein theInternet-connected lecture server organizes groups of lecture clientsprior to playing a lecture to the organized clients on the Internet. 16.The method of claim 10 wherein the lecture clients have lectureinteraction software executing on the client workstations, and in step(c) the clients interact with lectures through the client-interactionsoftware.
 17. The method of claim 10 wherein lectures requireparticipation by the teacher-author of the lecture, and while a lectureis played, lecture clients are directed to WEB pages in real time, andwhile viewing pages to which they are directed interact with the teacherauthor through the lecture-participation and the lecture-serversoftware.